Medical Terminology Abbreviations
Most medical terms are formed by a combination of basic word parts

Word _______________

Word _______________
Act as the _______________of most medical terms
Usually indicate the involved _______________ _______________
o
encephal/o
_______________
o
_______________/o
heart
o
_______________/o
_______________
Suffixes
Found at the _______________of a word
Usually indicate the _______________, condition, _______________, or disease
o
-_______________
surgical removal of
o
-osis
_______________ condition
o
-_______________
tumor
Prefixes
Found at the _______________of a word

• Usually indicate location, time, number, or status
o
_______________-
after
o
peri-
_______________
o
_______________-
three
Combining Vowels
*A combining vowel may be needed between the word root and the _______________to
make the medical term easier to _______________
A combining vowel – usually “___”- is used when the _______________begins with a
_______________
o
Example: neur/o (______________) + -_______________ (surgical repair)

_______________________
A combining vowel is not used when the _______________begins with a _______________
o
Example: neur/o (nerve) + -_______________ (inflammation)

_______________________
Medical Terminology Abbreviations
Combining Vowels
A combining vowel is _______________used when _______________or more root words are
joined
o
Example: _______________/o (stomach) + enter/o (_______________)

o
_______________________
______________________+ -itis = ________________________
A _______________ does not require a combining vowel
Practice
Prefix +
Word Root +
Suffix
poly-
_______________/o
-itis

o
_____________________________________
Definition: inflammation of many _______________
Practice
Prefix +
Word Root +
Suffix
hyper-
_______________ /o
-algia
_______________
stomach
_______________

_____________________________________
Assigned Root Words

angi/o
_______________

cardi/o
_______________

colon/o, col/o
_______________ (lg intestine)

derm/o, dermat/o
_______________

enter/o
_______________

gastr/o
_______________

my/o
_______________

neur/o
_______________

trache/o
_______________
Assigned Prefixes

hyper-
_______________, above

hypo-
less than, _______________

post-
_______________

pre-
_______________
Medical Terminology Abbreviations
Assigned Suffixes

-algia
_______________

-ectomy
_______________

-emesis
_______________

-gram
_______________

-ic
_______________ to

-itis
_______________ of

-ologist
_______________

-ology
_______________ of

Assigned Suffixes

-ostomy
_______________ opening

-otomy
_______________ into

-plasty
_______________

-scopy
_______________ exam

-ia
_______________

-ism
_______________

-osis
_______________

-otic
_______________
_______________ of
_______________
Physician’s Orders:

Diagnosis: Congestive Heart Failure
o
Intermittent Positive Pressure Breathing every 4 hours
o
Chest x-ray immediately
o
Arterial blood gases, complete blood count, electrolytes, and urinalysis
o
Intravenous of normal saline at 100 cubic centimeters per hour
Physician’s Orders with Abreviations:

Dx: CHF
o
IPPB q4h
o
CXR stat
o
ABGs, CBC, lytes, UA
o
IV of NS @ 100cc/hr
Medical Terminology Abbreviations
Medical Abbreviations

Medical _______________ are used to cut down on the _______________ spent documenting
_______________ care

Some _______________ are _______________ - others are specific to areas of the country or
_______________

_______________
Upper and lower case _______________
o
Example: pt = _______________

PT = _______________
_______________
*It is YOUR responsibility to know the approved medical abbreviations for your medical
facility
Assigned Abbreviations
_

c :
_______________
_

s :
_______________
_

p :
_______________
_

a :
_______________

@
_______________

ad lib
as _______________

ASAP
as _______________ as _______________

c/o
_______________ of

d
_______________

Dx, dx
_______________ (what’s wrong)

h
_______________

MD
_______________ doctor

prn
as _______________

q
_______________

pt
_______________

stat
_______________

TLC
_______________, loving care
Medical Terminology Abbreviations
Medical Abbreviations

bid
_______________ a day

qid
_______________ times a day

tid
_______________ times a day

qod
_______________ other _______________

tx
_______________

Sx
sign, _______________

VS
_______________

HOB
_______________ of _______________

D/C
_______________, _______________

CXR
_______________ x ray

Hx
_______________

NPO
_______________ by _______________
_______________